Prominent Individuals and Organizations Object to Chelsea Manning's Refusal of Entry into Canada

- 2017-10-23 -

CIPPIC has helped organize letters from over 40 prominent individuals and organizations supporting Chelsea Manning's legal team in its bid to reverse her refusal of entry into Canada. As CIPPIC points out in its own letter of support, the whistleblowing activities which formed the basis for Ms Manning's sentence in the United States have been integral to debates surrounding many matters of public interest—including a casual disregard for civilian life in the Iraqi and Afghanistan wars and a program of extra-judicial assassination targeting senior Taliban and Al-Qaeda officials. These disclosures could not be shown to have caused any direct damage, and Ms Manning's sentence for her crime of conscience has since been commuted by former US President Barack Obama. Refusing Ms Manning entry into Canada on the basis of her conduct is an injustice that should be reversed. The campaign was spearheaded by independent researcher Lex Gill. CIPPIC's letter can be read here: https://cippic.ca/uploads/20171012-LT_GoC_re_Chelsea_Manning.pdf

October 23, 2017, OTTAWA—Over 40 prominent civil society organizations, elected officials, university professors and professionals have sent letters in support of human rights activist Chelsea Manning, who was recently turned away at the Canadian border. The letters are united in their call to reverse the government’s decision to bar Ms. Manning from Canada, and were submitted by her legal counsel as part of a formal request for reconsideration to the Hon. Minister Ahmed Hussen on Thursday morning.

Chelsea Manning is an internationally recognized human rights activist and whistleblower. She has received numerous awards for her work as a prominent advocate for civil liberties, government transparency, LGBTQ rights, and prisoners’ rights.

The letters represent a diverse range of voices and viewpoints in support of her entry into Canada. Many point to the valuable insights Chelsea can offer Canadians, and highlight that it would be inconsistent with Canadian values of inclusion, freedom of expression, and diversity to refuse her entry. Some emphasize the public interest value of her actions as a whistleblower, which revealed human rights violations and informed public debate surrounding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Others stress that she poses no threat to public safety, and note that Ms. Manning’s sentence for her whistleblowing activities was commuted by former United States President Barack Obama in January 2017.

Copies of the letters are available on request from the organizations and individuals below.